Why is Provo so prolific on the national music scene?
Mimi Knowles performs in 2014 at the Provo Rooftop Concert Series.
Mimi Knowles performs to a packed crowd in 2014 at the Provo Rooftop Concert Series.
Apt, center, performs with House of Lewis in 2014 during the Provo Rooftop Concert Series.
Lead vocalist Dan Reynolds performs to a sold out crowd. at the Dee Events Center in Ogden On October 23 2013.
This is the third in a three-part series on the Utah music scene.
PROVO — Who’s laughing now?
There was a time that the idea of a music scene in Provo would elicit dismissive titters. A music scene in Provo? Please. Unless you’re talking about some sort of Lamanite Generation/Living Legends song-and-dance group at Brigham Young University. Or a second- or third-generation Osmonds boy band.
But in the last decade or so, Utah County has emerged as a player on the national music scene.
Arguably, it all started in the early 2000s with The Used, an Orem emo rock band that overcame substance-abuse problems and homelessness to sign a record deal with Reprise Records and churn out a half-dozen albums. Lead singer Bert McCracken even appeared on the MTV reality show “The Osbournes” during the time he was dating Kelly Osbourne.
THE UTAH MUSIC SCENE
• Part 1: Wasatch Front: A vibrant, impressive place for music
• Part 2: Future of Ogden’s music scene in question despite strong past
But it’s really been in the last few years that the Utah County music connection really took off, with a steady stream of popular bands tied to that area. Imagine Dragons. Neon Trees. Fictionist. The Moth and The Flame.
Photo supplied/Hopeless Records
The Used band members from left to right: Jeph Howard, Quinn Allman, Bert McCracken and Dan Whitesides.
So, what’s going on down there?
The real question, according to those in the know, is not what’s going on, but rather, who’s going on?
And the short answer is: Corey Fox.
Fox is the owner of Velour Live Music Gallery, an all ages venue in downtown Provo that has had a big hand in developing those four bands named above.
“At the center is Velour,” says Justin Hackworth, a Provo photographer and co-founder of the popular Rooftop Concert Series there. “It all stems from Corey Fox. It can’t be understated. I think all roads lead back to Corey.”
Hackworth says not only has Fox provided an all-ages venue where young bands can hone their craft, but he’s also a mentor, helping artists understand what they need to do to progress with their music.
10-year anniversary
Velour’s marketing manager, Kaneischa Johnson, says Fox is far too modest to toot his own horn, but she’s not.
“In Provo, a lot of people like to ask what’s in the water,” she said. “But it’s more, ‘What’s happening at Velour?’ … Corey’s very interactive and ‘hands-on’ with the bands. He likes to use sports analogies, and he sees himself as the coach.”
Fox, who has battled chronic kidney disease most of his life and is now in need of a transplant, recently answered questions via email. Having worked in the local music scene for 25 years, Fox says he’s heard the theories about how the Mormon culture of music lessons and singing in church produces these bands. And while he agrees that may have an impact, he doesn’t think it’s limited exclusively to Provo bands.
“My experience is that most members of even the heaviest hardcore bands in the area were at least raised Mormon,” he said.
The fact that bands like Imagine Dragons and Neon Trees have gone from the Velour stage to national success doesn’t come as a surprise to Fox, because he says he opened Velour “to do exactly that.” He says Velour functions as part-venue, part-music school, part-label and part-management company.
“My motivation is not to just supply entertainment, my motivation is to find talent and help develop it,” he said.
Velour celebrated its 10-year anniversary this year. The venue produced a two-disc compilation of bands associated with Velour, as well as eight weeks of anniversary shows featuring local bands from the last 10 years.
“Corey’s reunited many bands this year,” Johnson said, “and it took some therapy and coaching to make that happen with some of them.”
They also recently managed to get Imagine Dragons and Neon Trees on the same bill — and that’s never happened at Velour.
Owen Sweeney/AP photo, Invision
In this July 12, 2014 file photo, Tyler Glenn, frontman of the band Neon Trees, performs in concert during their “Pop Psychology Tour” at Festival Pier in Philadelphia.
Although Johnson calls the venue “fairly thriving, outwardly,” she said it’s still a month-to-month proposition — Velour still has to fight for survival, like any small business.
Normally, Velour is open Tuesday through Saturday evenings, but with Fox’s recent health issues, Tuesdays have been eliminated from the schedule. The 300-seat venue focuses on building local artists and bringing in touring bands. Open mike is Wednesday nights; admission is $2 to play, or $3 to listen. Most other shows at the venue are between $7 and $10.
“We’re well-known nationwide,” Johnson said. “A lot of touring artists say it’s one of their favorite spots to play.”
Sheer numbers
Part of the success of bands who’ve come through Velour is the standard of quality Fox expects, according to Johnson.
“It’s not just that a band has to be good,” she said. “Corey wants to know, ‘Are you willing to work hard and commit to your band?’ “
Those bands willing to put in the work are rewarded with opportunities to play, and Fox helps arm them with the tools they need for success. But, Johnson says, Fox also expects them to pay it forward, and to learn from fellow artists.
“We’ve worked really hard to continue to build community among bands so that they support one another,” Johnson said. “If I see a band that’s not showing up to the other bands’ shows, I think they’re not in it to win it.”
Another nationally recognized artist Provo now claims is one who got his start in Ogden. Ryan Shupe, frontman for Ryan Shupe and the RubberBand, hails from Ogden, and got his start in the Ogden-based Peewee Pickers youth band. Shupe, who signed with Capitol Records in 2005, had a Top 40 hit with “Dream Big.” He now makes his home in Utah County.
“It’s not the easiest place to tour from,” Shupe admits, “but I love it here.”
Shupe believes the national success of bands from the Provo area is partly a product of sheer numbers — between Brigham Young University and Utah Valley University, there are tens of thousands of students to fuel the Utah County music scene.
“I’ve always thought that the area down here should produce bands, and just sheerly by the fact that there are over 60,000 students at those schools,” Shupe said. “When you look at some of the popular jam and rock bands that will start in an area, it usually has a high-density youth population. If you can get that kind of support, that’s who will spread the word through things like social media. In my opinion, that’s the biggest contributing factor … that’s kind of the catalyst.”
Shupe also sees the benefit in having an all-ages venue like Velour.
“I think if you provide a space for the creativity to grow, that helps,” he said. “So Corey has kind of provided a venue for kids to shoot for.”
Another musical advantage Utah County has is the educational opportunities available. BYU’s School of Music includes a commercial music division, and UVU offers a commercial music major.
“One of the guys in my band went through the UVU commercial music program, and another guy went to BYU’s commercial music program,” Shupe said.
Music on the roof
As much of an impact as Velour has had on the Provo music scene, the city’s Rooftop Concert Series has been another key player. The series began in 2010, when four Provo residents — Hackworth, Sarah Wiley, C. Jane Kendrick and Mindy Gledhill — got together to discuss ways they could draw more people to the downtown area.
Hackworth admits they didn’t know if anybody would show up to that first concert. To their surprise, an estimated 500 people turned out. For the first five years, concerts were held on the top deck of a three-story parking garage downtown.
Then, two years ago, the ever-expanding series was moved down to street level, to accommodate more fans. The free shows now average between 5,000 and 8,000 people a pop, and last year’s Kaskade show drew an estimated attendance of 20,000.
An Imagine Dragons show a few years ago was the biggest one held atop the parking garage.
Chris Pizzello
Wayne Sermon, left, and Dan Reynolds, of the musical group Imagine Dragons, perform at the Billboard Music Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Sunday, May 18, 2014, in Las Vegas. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)
“That was our biggest show on the roof — it was just before they went out into the atmosphere of stardom,” Hackworth said. “They’d just signed with their label, and months later, they were on top of the world.”
And it may have been the Imagine Dragons show that convinced Rooftop Concert Series to finally come down off the top of their world.
“At the end of that show, we breathed a sigh of relief that no one was crushed, and the parking deck didn’t collapse,” Hackworth said.
When the Rooftop Concert Series first started out, Hackwork says it attracted a wide range of ages, with “a lot” of families the first few years. These days, the crowd is predominantly college students and other young people. A part of him misses the elevated shows.
“I like the old days,” he said. “I liked the rooftop. It was a unique venue, with the mountains in the background. But after we started getting 3,000 and 3,500 people, we just couldn’t fit anymore. It got crowded, and I feel like the enjoyment level went down. … But now, on the street, we can accommodate as many people as possible.”
Hackworth believes Velour and the Rooftop Concert Series have had a positive effect on the downtown vibe.
“I’ve had a downtown business for nine years, and when I came here, this place was a ghost town,” he said. “Now, at night stuff is happening, people are walking around, and I think our Rooftop Concerts are enmeshed in that.”
’A WONDERFUL STEW'
Provo Mayor John Curtis says government has an important role in developing a city’s music scene.
“I really do believe the best thing we can do is stay out of their way,” the mayor said. “Also, to watch for opportunities to be supportive. That’s one thing I enjoy, is looking for windows where we can be supportive and let artists know we’re there for them.”
Hackworth calls Provo’s musical success the result of “a wonderful stew of creative people,” involving a large number of players. And he includes the mayor in that recipe.
“It feels like it’s been much easier with John Curtis,” Hackworth said. “He’s poured a little bit of lighter fluid on this thing. He’s been behind us completely, he’s supportive, and he sees the importance — economically — of bringing 5,000 people downtown.”
Curtis admits there are the occasional complaints about loud, live music; that’s to be expected. But he said in seven years as mayor, he’s only seen one or two conflicts. The city is blessed with a downtown that doesn’t have residential areas nearby, and the area businesses, by and large, have been “extremely supportive.”
“They understand that when the Rooftop Concert Series comes downtown, they may not do as well that night, but the vibe and resurgence helps their business every other day of the week,” Curtis said.
“They like the vibe and feel of downtown Provo.”
Contact Mark Saal at 801-625-4272, or msaal@standard.net. Follow him on Twitter at @Saalman. Like him on Facebook at facebook.com/SEMarkSaal.